Jigsaw

 

 

 

 

Jigsaw Activity

What is the Jigsaw Activity?

A Jigsaw Activity is one that involves all students in the creation and sharing of knowledge independent of the instructor. The instructor is available to provide support and make sure all students are on task, but the responsibility for both teaching and learning belongs to the students. Jigsaw requires two rounds of student grouping. In the initial grouping, students are given some resources (e.g., text, formula, etc.) and charged with getting to know certain information on a particular topic, solving a particular problem or responding to a set of question. Each group has unique information with which to work. In the second grouping, students are reassembled into groups that each comprise one member of the unique original groups. In these second groups, each 'expert' from the topic assigned to the first group teaches his or her information to the new group. The task of the second group is to compile all information from the various 'parts of the whole' so that they have the complete picture on a topic or problem - i.e., a completed puzzle.

How do I design and implement an effective Jigsaw Activity?

On a site entitled "Doing CL Links to an external site." (CL=collaborative learning), they list four approaches to implementing the Jigsaw Activity. In fact, the configuration and implementation of an effective Jigsaw Activity can be a little complicated. Each second group has to have at least one member from each first group so that all information has a representative for the culminating task (e.g., completion of a worksheet or grid, writing a group summary paper synthesizing ideas, etc.). We will present one commonly used version of Jigsaw here.

Designing the Activity

  1. Determine the learning objectives for your lesson. Make sure that this activity targets those learning objectives. For example, if you are teaching about getting patient consent in a midwifery program, your objective might read: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to: list effective strategies for getting patient consent even during stressful situations (i.e., during labor); provide options to the patient without presenting personal bias; notify the patient that making no decision is also an option.
  2. Choose appropriate materials/resources for each group to effectively meet the objective of the task. Related to the above learning objectives for a midwifery program, you might provide each group with a case study and a list of questions to address related to each. In other courses, these resources might be sections of an article or the necessary formula to solve a problem.
  3. Choose a measure of accountability. How will you determine that all students did their part in their original group in order to be effective teachers/presenters in their second group? How can you know that the material they end up with after meeting in their second groups is accurate/relevant/correct (depending on topic)? Suggestions: Collect their handouts for a grade; have them write a synthesis paper on the material they compiled; give a quiz/exam based on this material; have a whole-class discussion after the activity to bring it all together. *This decision is very discipline specific and is also impacted by the learning objectives you set forth and the goal you had for this activity. Relating back to the midwifery course, you might call upon a few students to role play patient and provider for a few select case studies from the activity. In an Accounting class that assigned an original problem to each group, you might have a test with modified versions of these problems in the following class.
  4. Set a timeline for the activity. How much time will they need with each group?
  5. Go over the instructions for the activity very clearly and do comprehension checks to make sure they all understand the purpose of the activity and the method for grouping during both rounds. Ask questions: How will you find your first group? What task should you complete with these group members? How much time do you have? How do you identify your new group? What is the task to complete with this group? How much time do you have in this round?

Grouping Method

  1. Assign students to groups using a system that allows for easy regrouping. For example, give students a handout to complete or a text to be responsible for. Label those 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, 1B, 2B, 3B, 4B, 1C, 2C, 3C, 4C, 1D, 2D, 3D, 4D.
  2. Have students initially form groups by joining all those with the same number, so all 1s, 2s, 3s, and 4s work together. For the second round, have them regroup with students who have the same letter so all As, Bs, Cs, Ds work together. (*Note: these grouping tags will change accordingly for different size classes and desired group size for the purpose of your class. You can also use letters or numbers on different colored handouts and have them first group by letter/number and next by colored paper.)

Monitoring Group Work

  1. Once the students are in their groups, walk around to monitor that they are all on task and don't have any questions about the group's responsibility or the actual content. Sit with the groups either as a silent observer to see how they're doing and where they might be having trouble or as an active participant in their discussion, if appropriate.
  2. Make sure to keep time. Let them know when they only have a few minutes left with their groups.
  3. Debrief as per your chosen method. How did you decide you would measure that they attained the learning objectives for the class? It could be a formative assessment as you monitored group work in action. It could be through the role-play of case studies after the activity. It could be collecting handouts or giving an exam during the following class period. Regardless of what you choose, have some wrap-up in place to bring everyone together for a final word on the content and to address any remaining burning questions.